Common Sense Marketing: Out of Sight = Out of Mind
One of the most effective ways to accomplish the repetitiveness desired is the use of promotional products, which in my younger days were referred to as advertising specialties. They are a multi-billion dollar industry because they work. They deliver:

Residual impact, which is what you need to look for and depending on your budget this is one area to give serious thought to, but in highly creative approaches. Keep in mind an imprinted message doesn’t disappear after 10, 30 or 60 seconds. It’s there to be viewed repeatedly for an extended period of time. Think about the amount of time a name or message has to be absorbed when someone is enjoying a cup of coffee from an imprinted mug, wearing a logoed sweatshirt or lying on a silk-screened beach towel. This exposure often takes place in an uncluttered environment. In many situations, the promotional product is being viewed, used and enjoyed without any other form of advertising being around. Other benefits a promotional product strategy can deliver are…

Noncompetitive surroundings. The promotional product is not being shared at its time of exposure with messages from competitors.

Reinforcement. Imprinted products are excellent tools to reinforce an ad campaign’s overall message or to highlight some aspect of the value received from a particular brand, service or program.

Hands-on interaction. There’s no other medium so effective in generating a real interaction with the consumer. An imprinted product may be edible or functional; it may be worn or activated. Even if it’s just for “display,” a promotional product is still handled, therefore creating an interaction.

Cost Effectiveness – Are you looking at a true picture?
Too often, we’re faced with the argument that a medium such as the above mentioned promotional products may not be as cost-effective as broadcast or print media in reaching a sizable audience.

Recently, and advertiser crowed that its ad reached 127 million Super Bowl viewers. But did it really? How many of those 127 million viewers, went to the bathroom, kitchen or out to stretch their legs during that commercial break? How many used their remote to switch channels, if for no other reason than that’s their normal habit? And how many consumers who saw the ad could remember it 10, 30 or 60 days later and, more important, could recall what the ad sold?

What’s more important to a communicator? Cost per thousand (CPM), cost per lead (CPL) or cost per sale (CPS). The latter 2 count the most and where the promotional Products in your marketing mix can pay a higher ROI than other mediums.

For example, a mailing that incorporates an imprinted product gains a significantly higher readership and response than one that doesn’t. Trade show exhibits using ad specialties as gifts draw higher traffic. Premium offers act as an incentive to build retail traffic or increase lead generation.

Keep The Message Alive
We are in a world today where the demographics of buyers are constantly changing and nowhere is that more apparent then in the corporate environment. Thus it is key for us to stay fresh in our approaches, be different not for the sake of difference but to enhance our meaningfulness to our target and explore new ways to utilize established communication mediums as we explore new avenues of communication as they become available to us.

No matter what format you choose to deliver your marketing message abusiness has to answer this question for desired audience – “What’s in it forme?”

A fact of business life is that purchasing decisions are made on the real or perceived benefit that will be received from the decision to take a buying action, not the features or price alone.